Generation of MiraGals and the Phantom Sixth Man
by SilverIma
Summary: Not your typical Genderbend. Kuroko is staying male. Momoi is staying Female. However, Kagami and the 5 Miracles are all female. This stays close to the canon plotline. Pairing [Kuroko x Fem GOM] Enjoy!
1. Chapter 1

The Teiko Basketball club. An incredibly strong team with over 100 members and three consecutive championship wins. Even within that brilliant history, a group of five prodigies known as the "Generation of Miracles" stood above the rest. However, there was a strange rumor concerning the "Generation of Miracles". Despite being relatively unknown and lacking a game record, there was one more member recognized by the five prodigies. A phantom sixth man.

It was the first day of school for the relatively new Seirin High, beginning only its second year as a school and contender in the high school circuit. The team had reached all the way to inter high last year, but fell apart in the finals league to the three kings of Japan. This year, the team is looking to recruit new, talented players to give it the boost it needs to be the best in Japan.

"Make sure you find big, talented players for the team boys!" Riko, the coach and classmate of the second year players said.

"Naturally." Izuki replied, before taking a stack of papers and walking through the crowd. Mitobe and Koganei followed behind, handing out the flyers as they went.

Across the courtyard, a teal haired freshman was nose deep in a book, avoiding the rush without taking his eyes off the page. Nobody greeted him, not that he expected anyone to even see him. His name was Kuroko Tetsuya, a member of the legendary group of players that had the media going crazy for the past three years.

High schoolers had an aura about themselves, whether your strong, popular, nerdy, good at sports, etc. Kuroko lacked any trace of a personality, and therefore went unnoticed throughout the club signup event.

He came to a sign that contained a list of the clubs available and which tables to find them at. He glanced up quickly from his book, eyes more powerful than anyone there scanned the sign thoroughly in a second. He found what he was looking for, the basketball table.

Making his way over to the signup area, Kuroko noticed a girl with dark red hair straddling the folding chair in front of the table. She was making a fuss with one of the second years. Kuroko couldn't get the attention of either the girl nor the boy behind the table, so he simply took a sheet, filled it out, and placed it back on the corner of the table. He also took one of the cups that was sitting there, drank the juice, and left it where it was.

As he was walking away, he looked behind him to see the red head toss a paper cup behind her back and make it into the trash bin a few meters away. Both table attendants were surprised at the casualness of the shot. Kuroko smirked, brought his book back in front of his face, and walked undisturbed into the school building.

"That girl, I was surprised that she wanted to try out despite the obviously good physical shape she was in. Before a few years ago, it would be so strange to see a girl playing in the basketball circuit. At first I thought that she was another fangirl that wanted to try the sport as well, but after that small show of talent, I can't help but be relieved we have someone like her coming in." Riko said. She took the four papers and stacked them, getting up from her chair to clean up the station.

"Coach, you missed one" Koganei said, handing her one final form.

"But there was noone else here… Only the three boys from earlier and the red head." Riko muttered as she turned the paper over. "Kuroko Tetsuya, freshman, 'was going to sign up with you but I could not get your attention so I filled the form out myself.' Age: 16, Position: To be determined, Middle School: TEIKO!?" she screamed. The other boy sitting at the table glanced over at her.

"The legendary school with the unbeatable team? No way!"

"It's true Hyuuga, look at the application. AAH! Why can't I remember that golden egg's face? Regardless, I have a feeling this year's team may be the best in the district, no, the entire country!" Riko stated.

"Eh? Are you subtly putting pressure on your captain Riko?" Hyuuga said with a low mutter. Riko just beamed at him. "Either way, this is going to be an interesting year." He took a sip of his cup, only to find that it was empty. "What? But that's impossible, I just filled it with the last of our juice!" he complained.

After classes that same day, each club started their first meeting of the year. The basketball club was no different, opening up the gym for the first time that trimester.

"Alright boys! Line up!" Riko yelled. Each player stood side by side, waiting for the coach to appear.

"Hey, isn't our manager kinda cute?" Furihata whispered to his friend.

"She is a second year… if only she were a bit more sexy…"

Before the two could continue, Hyuuga whacked both of them on the head, "You idiots! Learn some respect.".

Riko put her hands on her hips and began the practice, "Welcome freshmen! I am the coach, Aida Riko."

"Eeeeeeh!?" was the general reaction among the newcomers. "You mean, it's not that guy?"

"No, this is our advisor Takeda sensei." Riko explained. The old man gave a small wave to the team. "Now, take your shirts off!"

"Riko excels at analyzing data on the physical body. Her dad is a sports trainer, so she has picked up the talent from a young age. By a single look she can determine your eating habits, talent, and even your potential." Hyuuga explained to the freshmen.

The redhead at the end of the line was getting angry that she had to undress herself in front of so many guys. "Uh, coach? I'd rather not give these players a show." she complained.

"Eh? Oh Kagami! I'm so sorry I forgot about you… we can go into the locker room in a minute, you can keep your clothes on." Riko said. There was a general groan of disappointment around the gym.

"Coach, you can just call me Taigari, my friends from America used the nickname 'Taiga', because I'm Japanese and my name sounds like Tiger in a Japanese accent." the girl player stated.

Riko went down the line assessing the players and commenting "Improve your stamina" or "Work on leg development". When she got to the redhead she was about to take her into the locker room when she forgot someone.

"Kuroko? Is Kuroko here?" Riko asked. 'I thought I would have noticed such a star player if he was.' "Guess he is out for today, anyways…"

"I'm Kuroko. Hello."

Riko had to suppress a scream as not only her but the entire team was taken aback by his sudden appearance. It was as if he appeared out of thin air. "Alright then Kuroko, remove your shirt!".

As the blue haired player tossed his shirt aside, Taigari was analyzing him. 'How can someone so weak play such a physical and size heavy sport?"

"Kuroko, you weren't part of the Teiko first string were you?" Hyuuga chided.

"I was."

"W-well, you weren't on the bench or in games right?" He tried again.

"I played in games." Kuroko answered in a monotone voice.

"See?... Eh!? No way!" Hyuuga burst out.

'How did someone of his stature play in games. Wait, wasn't Teiko's Generation of Miracles an all girl team? Why would the legendary players let a guy share the court with them?' Riko thought.

The only female player in the gym narrowed her eyes at the conversation. 'Generation of Miracles? I thought Japan was all the same. Perhaps this year will be interesting!.' She smirked and shifted her eyes to the team boy who sparked the discussion. Her eyes widened when she saw him staring back at her with a neutral face. She looked away quickly, 'what the hell? Doesn't he know it's rude to stare?'

Later that day Kagami was practicing her shots on an outdoor court, warming up for a new season of basketball. She aimed to take another shot, having sunk several in a row, when she saw what appeared to be a phantom in the corner of her eye. She gasped, and released the ball at an awkward angle, making it bounce off the rim and harmlessly drop to the court below.

"Gah! Who ar-... YOU!" Kagami pointed at the newcomer with a tick mark on her face. "Stop sneaking up on people!".

"I was here watching you this whole time." Kuroko responded, stepping onto the court to face the girl.

"Hold on a second." Taigari said, "Most people in sports have a certain aura or smell about them. Strong players smell differently than weak ones. You however, have no smell at all."

Kuroko only tilted his head. He hoped he didn't smell. He showered twice today.

"You sure made a big commotion back in the gym about being a part of some sort of legendary team. I'm interested to see what a 'generation of miracles' member can do." Kagami said shooting the basketball into Kuroko's hands.

"What a coincidence… I was about to challenge you as well." Kuroko stated, tossing his overshirt to the side. "Come, let's play One on One.".

Kuroko started with the ball. The first thing that went through his mind is the limited one on one experience he had, and the even more limited winning experience he had in one on one situations. Regardless, he would utilize what he had to see just how good his prospect of a light may be.

Kuroko bounced the ball slowly, analyzing the openings in his opponent's defense. He thought about faking left and dribbling right, but one look at the physique of Kagami told him that even if the fake succeeded she would catch up to him in no time. A three point shot from where he stood was also out of the question. Kagami could easily throw up a hand to block his sloppy shooting form.

He decided to test her reflexes and reach with his first play. He dribbled to the right before crossing to the left. He then prepared to take a shot.

Taigari had fell for his fake, but had the drive been legitimate, she would have had the ball in seconds. She saw Kuroko getting into a shooting position and threw up her arms to block it.

Kuroko's eyes widened at the length of her reach, especially from a position of being faked out. He released the ball, not surprised at all when it was blocked and rolled out of bounds.

Kuroko took the ball from the half court line again. He noticed the spring in her step as she recovered from his fake. Kuroko had been playing with super gifted players for three years, and each of them being of the female gender. He saw hints and warning signs of a special ability, and there was a possibility that Kagami's ability to leap may be one of them.

Kuroko decided to do one last test. He simply jumped up and shot the ball in a decently high arc to the basket, catching Kagami off guard. To his surprise Taigari was able to not only run up on him in time, but jump so high off the ground that she tipped a ball that had already been released for nearly a full second.

Tetsuya was shocked. Not that the ball didn't go in, he was never a good shooter to begin with, but that she was able to get a finger on his shot. That kind of raw talent could be honed into an unstoppable weapon in the future. She wasn't ready for it yet, but in due time he would cooperate with his new coach to let this ability blossom.

He flinched at his choice of words. The last time he dealt with abilities blossoming was when he began to hate the sport. He can still hear a certain dark blue haired girl jogging ahead of him saying "Your passes take up too much time, I just want to score and be done with it. I do not need… no… I do not want them anymore." This time would be different. He would instill the right virtues into this team and they would prove to the Generation of Miracles that team play is not only the best play, but the point of the game as a whole. He would bring them out of the darkness, even if it meant beating them one by one at the game they believe no one is better at than themselves.

"Kuroko?" Taigari was wondering why Kuroko was still standing there looking off into space. She had only tipped his shot, there was no need to stop playing.

"Sorry Taigari-san, I was thinking of something."

"Thats fine, its my turn to show you what I got! Show me what the Generation of Miracles can do!" She drove the ball towards the hoop.

Play and play went by, Kagami never having to give up the ball. 'He's… He's… pathetic. He is so bad that he doesn't even smell weak yet.' "You… are you trying to pick a fight? You challenge me to a one on one and the best thing you did was a simple crossover on the first possession."

Kuroko only picked up the ball and attempted to give it back to the girl.

"No, it's fine. Guys like you, who believe that enough effort can get them anywhere just don't belong in the basketball circuit. Some advice, quit now. At Least there will be time to find a club better suited towards your abilities and likings.

"No."

Taigari turned to the boy in shock. He hadn't hardly spoken all game.

"I cannot accept that. I have trained for years to stand on the same court as players like you and my old teammates. I cannot fathom quitting my passion." Kuroko stated with great conviction.

"Fine, just don't hold me back." Kagami said as she turned around to leave. She grabbed her water bottle and downed a good portion of the contents. She thought back to Kuroko's words and snorted. 'People like him who have no talent but lots to say, I just cannot see what's so fun about losing. He talked with such emotion after getting crushed. Wait… we played for 20 minutes. He wasn't even breathing heavy.'

Kuroko decided to head to Maji burger to cool down after his short rant. He ordered his favorite vanilla milkshake and sat down at an empty table. Shortly after, he saw Kagami walk in, order an insane amount of food, and sit down in front of him. She didn't appear to notice him.

'Man, that guy is something else.' Taigari thought. She took a bite of her burger only to hear a "Nice to see you again" from across her table.

"ACK, GAH! Kuroko stop doing that! Why are you sitting at my spot? People are going to think we hang out together."

"I was here first."

"Whatever. Here, someone as skinny as you needs to eat up." she tossed him one of the many burgers on her tray.

They ate in silence, each pondering the individual across from them. When Kagami was finished, she tossed the garbage in the receptacle and they headed out. On the walk back something came to the girl.

"Hey Kuroko, if I were to play someone from the Generation of miracles right now, how would I do?"

Kuroko took a moment to think. He compared the agility, reflexes, and court sense to the five ladies that he played with the past three years. He imagined Midorima shooting over Kagami's height all the way from half court. He saw Aomine completely destroying the red head in fakes, speed changes, only to fall backwards and shoot the ball at an insane angle. Kuroko imagined the tall purple haired girl standing under the net with a bored look on her face. Any shot that Kagami put up being batted down with ease. He saw Akashi breaking Taigari's ankles and staring down at her with a piercing gaze saying something about how she is never wrong. Finally, he saw the blonde idol copying anything that Kagami did, but better and with increasing accuracy.

"You would be destroyed instantly.".

The following day, Riko decided to hold a practice game, pitting the second years against the first years. This would let her see the second years' development, and judge the potential of the new players.

"Didn't our senpai get to the inter high league as only first years?" one of the first years commented.

"Amazing… How could we ever beat a group like that?" another replied. A third nodded his agreement.

"Oi, you three." Taigari said as she stalked up to the trio. "Don't go saying things like 'We Can't beat them' before the game has even started! Just pass the ball to me and dont get in the way."

"H-Hai!" the three said in unison.

Hyuuga was putting his jersey on when Izuki walked over to share a smile. They had formed the team from the ground up, and were ready to test these new freshmen to see if they had what it took to play for their school.

"Let's show these kouhai the power of experience" Hyuuga said with a smirk.

"But of course." the raven haired point guard replied.

"LISTEN UP!" Riko shouted, getting everyone's attention. "The game will be regular rules, and normal time limits. There will be no timeouts unless made by me. Keep it clean, this is a game between teammates. Lets see what you all got!"

Kagami and Mitobe lined up across from each other, eagerly waiting for the ball to be tossed. The whistle blew, and the basketball soared into the air. Not high enough however, that Taigari couldn't jump and tip it at it's highest point.

The freshmen started with the ball. Furihata dribbled down court, only to get the ball stolen by Izuki who said "Wow, I get not only the ball, but an open court as well? This is a steal!" Hyuuga gave him a knock on the head as he ran past.

"If you have time for puns, you have energy to run faster Izuki!" he yelled.

The point guard chuckled. He faked a drive to the left only to pass the ball back and to the right into the hands of a waiting Hyuuga. He caught the ball and jumped up to make the first shot of the game. Even though Taigari jumped impossibly high, the shooting guard was able to shoot the ball early enough to where it did not matter. The ball soared above their heads and into the basket.

"How's that for an opener first years?" Hyuuga joked.

[2nd Years - 3, 1st Years - 0]

"Hey! Pass it here." Kagami said as she jogged towards the freshman that was holding the ball. She received the pass without hesitation and began to run down the court.

Koganei jumped in front of the redhead to attempt a steal, only to get completely outmatched as she faked him right, then left, then drove right. Mitobe, who was guarding the hoop prepared to block a layup, but widened his eyes in suprise when Taigari jumped from just inside the free throw line. She soared over everyone's heads as if she had sprouted wings and took off in flight. Her hands made contact with the rim, jamming the ball in with ferocity.

"How's that for a response?" she taunted with a smile.

Kuroko, who had purposefully been as far away from the ball as possible smiled. 'She has the enthusiasm that the rest lost. She has that spark that will never go out. All I need to do is blow on that spark, to get a raging flame that our team can count on'.

"Woah! Did you see how high she jumped!" Koganei gasped.

Riko stared in shock at the physical ability of her player. 'Th-This is crazy!'

"No way she's in our grade, that jumping ability is crazy!" Furihata exclaimed, only for his two friends to nod in agreement. "Hey, maybe with that we can beat the Generation of Miracles!"

Kuroko frowned at that statement. 'Had the Generation of Miracles really been that forgotten about that seeing a simple high jump gave people hope of defeating them? Well, I shouldn't be a hypocrite. I think she can do it too.'

The game continued on for a bit, with Taigari doing both offense and defense flawlessly. The first years were able to gain an 8 - 3 lead on the second years, much to their chargain.

The second years briefly met, and then returned to their positions on the court. Once the play started, the freshmen realized in dismay that their ace had been not double, but triple teamed.

With this new development, Kagami was essentially shut down, and unable to receive passes or break free without causing a foul. Without their star player, the first years fell victim to the second years run and gun style which included a fast drive and either a quick pass out to Hyuuga for a three, or a bounce pass to Mitobe for a hook shot inside.

The third quarter ended, with the scoreboard looking bleak for the first year players.

[Second Years - 29, Third Years - 8]

"There's no way we can catch up now, the game's already over" a few of them muttered.

Taigari was already pissed that they had triple teamed her, but to hear such words from her teammates who she was carrying the burden of made her over the top angry.

"YOU! How can you give up already!? There is an entire quarter left! We can do this!" she half yelled half encouraged her teammates.

"But… how?" one of them replied.

"I- I don't know just gimme the ball and I will figure something out."

"Understood." a voice came from seemingly nowhere.

Throughout the game Kuroko had been analyzing the new star player. She had already proven to him that she had an abundance of skill, and he saw her put it to good use during the game. Taigari had shown no fear when facing the strong team that was the Second years. The final point Kuroko had to check was whether she would crumble in a desperate situation.

She sure as hell didn't.

Kuroko was satisfied that his new light would fit all his criteria, and decided to take her for a test drive.

"W- what? Who sai- KUROKO!? You were playing in this game…" Kagami muttered in surprised.

"Hai."

Riko stood on the sidelines in exasperation, 'I'm the ref and I didn't even notice him.'

"What can you do Kuroko?" Furihata asked.

"Pass me the ball."

Taigari jumped in saying, "Eh? Pass you the ball? I can just drive it in I know I can!"

"You can't win by yourself" was the monotone reply.

"Damn you, What are you saying now?" she gave him an angry look.

"I will help you. I cannot explain my abilities, you will just have to… experience them."

'So ominous...' was the general reaction.

The game resumed at the start of the fourth quarter. The first years had the ball, and were looking out for their teammate who said to give him the ball.

'They can't find me…' Kuroko thought. He quickly looked at everyone on the opposing team and found a small pocket on the court that was at the edge of each of their gazes. He would make use of the blind spot in their eyes so their reaction would not be a triggered emotion, but a fluid acceptance that something was there. That time gap would give his point guard the opportunity to see him and pass it.

Putting his plan into action, Kuroko changed his ever fluid movements to stop suddenly in the exact spot needed, and saw his teammates shocked reaction to noticing him. He motioned with his hands to prompt the first year to give him the ball.

To the second years, the point guard had just made a pass to nobody. Whether it was a slip of the hand or a surrender, they didn't care. Koganei reached out for the ball only to have it literally change course mid flight and end up exactly in the hands of an open power forward. He was too stunned for words.

"Put it up!" a shout came from seemingly nowhere, but was loud enough to get the mind of the boy running again. With nobody by him, he was uncontested as he did a simple layup and jogged back to his team.

"W-what was that!? Did you guys all see that!" Koganei shouted to his team. Normally he would have been bonked on the head for his antics at missing a steal, but no response came. None of the second years had an answer to what just occurred on the court.

Several more plays commenced, and the same thing happened. A seemingly errored pass changed course and flew into the hands of any receiver that was open. Even Taigari received one and was able to break free of her guards and dunk it in.

The score was Second years - 37 to First years - 36 with twelve seconds left on the clock.

"Alright! Defense! We get this stop we win this!" Hyuuga cried.

The first year who was playing point was searching for a blue blur to pop up out of nowhere. He was so focused on the inside, that he missed Izuki's tip of the ball.

'Oh Crap! That might be the game if they make this!' he thought.

Izuki sped down the court until he was just over the three point line.

"NO YOU DON'T!" Kagami said as she raced down the court after him. She guarded the second year like her life depended on it.

Each player was in position, Izuki had but to give it to an open player and the game was secured. He saw Mitobe juke out a first year by the net. He passed.

The ball looked like it was easily going into the hands of the silent player, when a flash of blue appeared out of nowhere and grabbed the ball mid flight.

"Kuroko!?" the second years responded.

The phantom sixth member dribbled the ball down the court, aware of the time. There was a low chance that he could stop and shoot, and his layup percentage was not very good. However, he heard the unmistakable sound of thundering feet coming after him, a sound he recognized from the night before.

The boy smirked and tossed the ball up towards the basket as if it was a sloppy layup. He felt a slender hand on top of his head as the girl vaulted over him and dunked the ball milliseconds before the buzzer went off.

"That's why I hate the weak!" she said. "You have to make the shot dumbass!"

Kuroko displayed a small smile as he allowed her to fall in front of him using his head as support.

The first years had beaten the second years, but more importantly, Kuroko had found his new light.

Taigari was sitting once again at Maji Burger chowing down on a heap of burgers when suddenly she heard a voice… from across her table.

"Hello". Kuroko stated.

"Gah! Why do you keep doing this!" she yelled, choking on a bite of food.

"Again, you sat down where I was eating." Kuroko replied.

"Why are you even here?" she asked in exasperation.

"I like the vanilla milkshakes". He said.

They ate in silence for a moment.

"Here." Kagami said, giving the boy one of her burgers. "You might be annoyingly weak on the court, but you deserve one today."

"Thank you very much" Kuroko replied.

Once the two were done eating, they walked home similarly to how they did the night before.

"Hey Kuroko" Taigari said. She had something she needed to get off her chest.

"Yes?"

"Why did you choose a school like Seiren when your teammates all went to strong contenders like Shutoku or Rakuzan?"

Kuroko thought about his answer for a second.

"Because I want to show them that basketball is not a one man sport. Basketball is something that is done as a team. I didn't want to go from one self assured school to another. I wanted to help build a team not only talent wise, but emotionally as well. Seiren is like a new start for me. Not unlike you Kagami-san.

"Eh? What do you mean?"

"I said before that you cannot beat the Generation of Miracles. However, with me helping you there is a chance we can. I am a shadow. I play without being noticed by others, and help from unseen places. You are a light. You play with power and demand attention on the court. The stronger the light, the more it accentuates the shadow. You and I will stand up to the Generation of Miracles as partners. I will make you the best in Japan" Kuroko explained.

Kagami was surprised at his declaration, but then chuckled to herself. "Honestly… Now you've got me all fired up." Taigari muttered. "However, there is one thing you got wrong."

Kuroko looked up in confusion. He thought that what he said was his true feelings.

"Were not going to just stand up to them. Were going to beat the humility back into them. If they cannot imagine a scenario where they lose, we're going to shove it in their face with overwhelming power. Your teammates won't know what hit them." She said with a smirk on her face.

"Hai, Kagami-san." Kuroko responded with a smile.

"To being the best in Japan" Kagami said holding out a fist to her companion.

"Let's give it all we've got." Kuroko replied, giving her a fist bump.

The two separated, going their different ways. Neither could sleep that night however, with thoughts of the new basketball season going through their head.

Taigari was imagining the incredibly strong opponents waiting for her on the court, and the exhilarating games that would follow.

Kuroko sighed with a sad smile on his face. He imagined each of the five girls that he would be going up against over the course of the year. He wanted so desperately to text one of them or give them a call and talk, but he had nothing to say until he proved them wrong. Until he once again was regarded as someone of importance, he did not bother arguing his ideals. 'We will meet soon; Ryona, Shey, Daika, Atsuki, and Seira.'

His final thought before bed was of a pink haired girl who he regarded as his best friend. 'And how could I forget you Momoi? I will once again join each of you on the court. This time though, will not be to crush the dreams of a middle school team, but to wage war.

A/N : Well, this idea popped into my mind a few days ago. I was reading 'Our Treasure' where Kuroko is a girl and the rest of the GOM are kind of sort of in love with her but are super overprotective. I thought 'What if I make a fanfic where the roles are reversed?'

Kuroko will have to protect four basketball idiots while dealing with the over obsessiveness of a fifth. At the same time, he struggles to understand a certain pink haired female.

Not much different than the first canon episode in this first chapter, but you will start to see differences next update with the introduction of Kise Ryona, the basketball playing idol.

R&R


	2. Chapter 2

Oh my goodness this is more than I thought I would get done. I anticipated another 5k update, but this is well over 8. Don't expect this much in the next update, although you never know. I write with a goal in mind of how much I want to cover, and then I just go for it.

Anyways, here are a few reviews from chapter one I would like to acknowledge before we get started. Thanks to all of you!

Littlist1 - Poor Kuroko indeed. Thank you for the feedback, and I hope I won't disappoint.

FairytaleSabby - Here it is! :D

NinjaFang1331 - Thanks for your support!

Guest - I'm glad your interested! Please let me know how I did with this chapter.

* * *

Chapter 2: Golden trust

Another day of practice came about for Seiren. The sky was blue and the sun shone warmly down on the players heading towards the gym.

"Coach will be running late for practice today" Hyuuga mentioned to the group.

"Really? That might be a good thing." Fukuda muttered. "Lately she has been pretty scary". The group shuttered, specifically the first years.

Kagami remembered when she had asked Hyuuga if she was set to play in games. How far off she was from that point was scary to think.

"Huh? No, you can't play in games." Hyuuga replied to a shocked Taigari.

"B-but I'm good enough! What's wrong with me?!" she sputtered.

"You're still a trial member. It's not about how good you are, coach still needs your official forms and she has final say." He answered.

Kagami huffed and went off to find their brown haired coach. She found her sitting in her classroom during lunch break. Riko appeared to be lost in a game as she absentmindedly sipped on her milk carton looking off into space.

"COACH!" Taigari shouted when she got in front of the poor girl.

"PPPSSSH!" Riko spit the milk all over Taigari's face. She wiped it off without missing a beat.

"Coach, give me an official club membership form!" she demanded.

A few guys in the back of the room had heavy blushes on their faces seeing the redhead with milk all over her face.

Riko wiped her mouth with her sleeve before whispering, "What is it with today? You first strings are going to give me a heart attack!". She thought back to when a certain teal haired player snuck up on her earlier that day to ask the same thing. "Just how impatient can you guys be? Well, I guess you have potential. Fill this out and bring it to me on Monday."

"Monday? I'll just do it now and get it over with. Do you have a pen?" Kagami said as she glanced over the form.

"M-o-n-d-a-y." Riko stated again. "I won't accept it unless you're on the roof Monday morning."

Taigari was about to question her coach, when she saw a look that just screamed 'ask my why'. She wisely accepted the paper and went on her way.

On the aforementioned Monday, the first years all greeted Riko on the roof of the school. They were overlooking the Monday assembly of all the students that go to Seiren.

"Uh… why are we meeting now?" Furihata asked. "The assembly is going to start in 5 minutes!"

"Now now, don't be rude first year. I just need to confirm your dedication to the team." their coach said with a sickeningly sweet smile. "I need players who have the determination to go the distance. I want members to have a goal, and that goal needs to be enforced. All of you will step up and declare your goals for this club to the whole school. Failure to complete said goals will result in confessing to your crush naked!"

There were several gasps in the group. _'Confess naked? Isn't that a bit extreme?'_

"One more thing. Your goals cannot be something lame like 'I want to do my best' or 'I want to score a basket'. Those kind of attitudes will not cut it. Say something with depth and meaning to it!" Riko told her team.

"Uh, can I say I want a girlfriend?" one of the first years mentioned.

"NO!"

He shrunk out of her gaze. Taigari however, decided to get it over with. She was about to jump up on the railing to declare her ambitions, when she remembered the skirt she was wearing. The redhead decided to settle for leaning over the railing instead.

"Listen up! My name is Kagami Taigari, class 1-B, Number 5. I will beat the generation of miracles and become the best player in Japan!". She stepped away to see their coach give her a nod.

Hyuuga was standing among the students for morning assembly. 'She's doing it again this year?

"Who's next?"

"Uh, can I say I want a girlfr-"

"NO!"

"I'll go." Kawahara stated. He walked up to the railing and announced his details similar to Kagami. However, he indulged in a sob story background that he may or may not have fabricated on the spot. Riko, realizing the time he was taking up promptly stopped him halfway and let him go.

Fukuda went next, saying he wanted to help the seniors in their time of need.

Furihata stepped up after him, stating that if he was the best at something the girl he liked would go out with him. He wanted to give his best effort to be the best at the sport. "If that's not good enough, I don't mind being rejected." he said.

"Mmm I suppose that's alright. You pass. Kuroko?" the coach motioned for the last remaining first year to step up.

 _'Almost 100% of the audience doesn't know me. I intend to make Taigari the best in Japan, but that is only a means to reach my true goal. I picked basketball back up because I wanted to save those smiles that have not graced their faces in a year. I wanted to see them enjoy not only the sport, but being with each other again. I need to hear words that contradict the cold and unfeeling ones that I heard from my best friend. My goals include bettering myself, bettering my team, and beginning the expedition to save my friends. All to reach my true goal… beating the Generation of Miracles.'_

Kuroko, having organized his thoughts stepped up to the railing and pulled a megaphone out of literally nowhere.

"Where did he get that!?" Fukuda asked. Nobody responded, wanting to hear what their smallest player had to say.

Kuroko took a deep breath and activated the megaphone. Right before he could declare his wishes, the door to the roof bursted open and an angry teacher began to lecture them about respecting school policy and whatnot.

Each of the students was given a detention and forced to walk off the roof and down to the morning assembly.

 _'So Close!'_ Riko thought.

The group entered the gym and changed for practice. "Hey, where is our coach?" a first year asked.

"She was out getting a practice game set up." Hyuuga replied.

"Oh, I think I saw her skipping around the school earlier" Taigari commented.

Each of the second years' faces went pale at this.

"Prepare yourselves" Hyuuga started in a dark tone. "She only skips when our opponent is incredibly tough."

At that moment Riko burst through the gym scaring them almost as much as Kuroko does.

"Coach! What kind of practice game did you arrange?" Fukuda asked.

"I was able to get one set up with Kaijou high. They shouldn't disappoint." she responded.

"Disappoint? Kaijou was a national level team last year, and I heard they were one of the schools that received a member of the Generation of Miracles!" Izuki said.

Kuroko glanced over to the raven haired point guard as he finished his outburst. _'Akashi went to Rakuzan, but refused to let the rest of them follow her despite the school's insistence. Murasakibara went far away to Yosen, and Aomine went to Tuou where they would let her play independently instead of with the team. Midorima chose one of the three kings of Tokyo, wanting a team with just as strong of a reputation as Rakuzan. That leaves…'_

Outside the gates of Seiren High School stood an incredibly beautiful blonde girl. She was tall for her age, but not so much as to call attention to it like a certain purple haired player. She looked around the entrance as if checking to make sure she was in the right place.

"So this is Seiren? Kurokochii why did you ever choose a place like this?" She muttered with a frown.

As she walked through the courtyard several students took notice and whispered among each other.

"Hey, isn't that the pop star idol Kise Ryona?"

"Gaaaaaah! She is so pretty! I want to be just like her!"

"Wow, check out that beautiful babe! I'd do anything to get with her."

Ryona couldn't figure out which way was the way to the gym, so she picked a random group of boys and asked for directions.

"Heyoo, could any of you tell me how to get to the gym please?" She said with a wide smile. The boys stood there stunned and barely registered what she asked.

"Uh, it's like kinda that way ma'am." One found the nerve to say.

"Thank you so much!" Kise rang out as she skipped towards the buildings they pointed at.

The boys stood there stunned. "W-was that the pop idol Kise Ryona?"

"Y-yeah it was. What could she be doing at our school?"

"She wanted directions towards the gym. That makes sense because aside from being an idol she is a crazy good basketball player, being included in the Generation of Miracles!"

"We might see something amazing today. Let's grab the others!"

"Its Kise." Kuroko said.

"What was that Kuroko?" Koganei asked.

"Kise Ryona is the player we will go up against. Kuroko repeated.

The boys checked a magazine they found featuring each of the Teiko regulars.

"All of the Generation of Miracles are in this feature, the ace of the court Aomine, the impossibly perfect shooter Midorima, the iron defense Murasakibara, the All rounder with limitless energy Kise, and the unrelenting Captain Akashi… but no Kuroko?"

"I was asked for an interview by a female reporter but Akashi ended up herding me away saying something about how they shouldn't get their dirty hands on me." Kuroko explained.

 _'What a possessive Captain.'_ They all thought.

"Oi! Freshmen! Let's start practice already!" Hyuuga shouted. The group went to grab basketballs to practice shooting. Taigari had began a practice one on one with Izuki, pulling a spin move to the right and dunking the ball at a slight angle as to avoid a block.

Murmurs and squeals came into earshot of the players. The sounds started to get closer until a door opened up to reveal a train of students, with a blonde beauty at the front.

"Mou… I didn't mean to attract so much attention. I just wanted to see Kurokochii!" said beauty complained.

The players of Seiren stood shocked at the irregular scene playing out in the gym. The girl which was the focus of attention began to sign autographs for fans and take pictures with the more daring ones. All the while she was searching for something or someone, it seemed.

While his teammates were staring at the girl, Kuroko decided someone had to get things going or they would never get on with practice. His face became a sad smile as he watched someone he considered to be a de facto little sister acting so grown up. He regretted allowing her to be forcefully molded into a pop sensation when she only wanted to be a likeable girl. This game would bring out the version of her that was subdued to allow for a harder, more fan pleasing person to come forth. He would get the true Ryona back.

"Kise-san."

All of a sudden the blonde stopped signing an autograph and her head jerked up. She quickly scanned the gym until her eyes landed on a head of teal hair. Her face lit up in genuine elation as she offhandedly gave back the half signed paper to a guy and rushed onto the court. "Kurokochii!" she yelled happily.

The yellow ball of energy tackled said player into a hug, but Kuroko held them up showing a surprising amount of strength only seen when supporting the Miracles.

"It's nice to see you again Ryona-san." Kuroko said.

"Mouu… why can't you use chan instead? It would make me so happy!" Kise replied.

"Ill try to remember next time." he lied, although a smile crept onto his face.

The rest of Seiren stood awestruck at their teammates closeness to such a famous individual. "K-Kise Ryona! What are you doing here?" Hyuuga asked.

"I heard that Seiren was going to be our first opponents in a practice game. When I remembered that Akashi-san told us Kurokochii went here, I had to come see him right away!" she answered.

"Kise. You left your fans without an explanation." Kuroko reprimanded.

The girl pouted and returned to the group of boys that were glaring daggers at the phantom sixth man. The idol asked for a few minutes to finish up autographs and pictures.

Finally, the crowd dispersed and the female player made her way back towards Kuroko.

"Kurokochii! I missed you so much I can't believe we haven't seen each other in three months!" she whined as another hug was initiated.

"Why do you care so much about Kuroko?" a female voice said from across the court.

Kise suddenly shifted in Kuroko's grasp which made him fumble with her for a moment. Unfortunately that was the moment that Taigari decided to chuck a basketball at the duo. Noticing Kuroko's inability to move, Ryona shot her hand out and caught the ball with relative ease.

"Watch it! You almost hurt Kurokochii!" she reprimanded in a playful tone, although her eyes betrayed the anger that she had for the action.

"I am fine Kise. Thank you for helping me just now." Kuroko said in his usual voice. "Taigari, please refrain from throwing basketballs around the court like that. You might hurt someone if your not careful."

"Uh… Sorry about that Kuroko. My eagerness got the better of me when I saw a Generation of Miracles player enter the court." the redhead said twirling her hair in embarrassment. "I want to see if they are really everything they are hyped up to be." She looked right at the Miracle and said, "Besides, you couldn't have come here just to say hi."

 _'I pretty much just came here for Kurokochii, but I won't lie by saying I want to test out his new partner.'_ "Hmm. I don't think I'm mature enough to let something like this slide. I am also curios about the new girl that Kuroko will be playing with." the blonde said with a dark glint in her eye and a smirk on her lips. "C'mon. One on One."

"Alright by me! I'll beat you 5-0!" Taigari challenged.

Kuroko watched the two move towards a hoop to begin their bout. _'I doubt you will even get one, partner.'_

"Coach, this might be bad" Kuroko mentioned to the brown haired girl.

"Huh? Why?" She responded, finally getting out of the trance that the blonde player had put on everyone in the court.

Kise stole the ball that Kagami had driven towards the basket. She walked back to half court to gain possession, and began a drive similar to the redhead's. She faked left and pulled a spin move to the right, proceeding to dunk at a slight angle to avoid a block.

"T-that was my move!" Taigari said in an outburst.

"Do you now see coach? Kise can do anything that Kagami-san does, but better, and with the skill and energy that made her one of the legendary team."

 _'How can we beat someone like that!?'_ Riko thought.

The game continued on, with Ryona scoring a final dunk on Taigari. The score ended up being 5-0, as Kuroko had predicted.

"Wow Kuroko, your old teammate is really something!" Koganei commented.

"I don't know that person." Kuroko responded, as if deep in thought.

"Heh?" The cat-faced teen asked in confusion.

"They were good before, but in nearly three months the skill and basic fundamentals have improved far beyond my expectations." Kuroko said. 'I was naive to think I could gain on them as if they were not getting better over time as well.'

"Mou… I am quite disappointed with that display." Ryona said as she walked off the court. "Give us Kurokochii. His talents will be put to better use in a place like Kaijou."

"What!?" The team yelled, unable to believe that this girl just asked them to give away a player.

"Kise-san. I appreciate your invitation, but I must decline. I have chosen Seiren, and together we will reach the top." Kuroko replied. "I have a responsibility to Taigari-san to make her the best in Japan."

"Hey, hey, don't go stealing my lines now Tetsuya." Kagami said as she walked towards the group. She threw an arm around Kuroko's shoulder much to the blonde's displeasure.

"You can't be serious Kurokochii. Come play with me again! We will be able to surpass all the girls, even Seira!"

"I'm so sorry Ryona-san. I wish you and Kaijou the best of luck, but I will be staying here. Of Course if you need me for anything, give me a call at any time." Kuroko finished. "I look forward to our game."

Ryona gave her old teammate a sad smile as she made her way out of the gym. _'So this is what rejection feels like.'_

The following day, the Seiren players were making their way through the Kaijou gates when Kuroko noticed something about his new light.

"Kagami-san. Please take better care of yourself, especially before games. It doesn't appear that you have slept an hour since yesterday."

"Shut up Kuroko, I wasn't able to sleep due to the excitement of today's match. I am all fired up!" Taigari replied,

"What are you, some kid on her first field trip? This is a game, and we need to give it our all!" Hyuuga reprimanded from the head of the group.

"Wooow. Kaijou is really dedicated to their sports programs! Look at the size of the gym!" Koganei commented.

"Gyms, you mean" Izuki replied. There were several huge facilities dedicated to basketball littering the school grounds.

Before long, Kise had spotted the group and ran up to greet them.

"Kise!" Kagami started, only for the blonde to completely pass her by and stop in front of Kuroko.

"Kurokochii! I have been crying into my pillow ever since you rejected me yesterday. No guy has ever denied me before!"

"Ryona-san, please stop being so dramatic." the teal haired boy said.

Kise looked even sadder for a moment, before composing and turning her glare on Kagami. "I'm interested in the person that made Kurokochii say things like this. I will prove that even if you are now his light, I am a million times more suited to the position."

"Bring it on drama queen!" Taigari replied, a fire lit in her eyes.

The group ended up getting guided to the correct gymnasium by Kise, who stood in between Kuroko and Kagami the whole way there.

Upon entering, they were greeted by a hefty man with a clipboard. "Ah, Seiren. Welcome. Which one of you is the head coach?"

"Me sir!" Riko replied, raising her hand.

"You? You're not the manager?" Takeuchi asked, ignorant to the tick marks appearing on Riko's face. "Well, we have made simple arrangements for today's game. Unfortunately, there won't be enough the lower strings can learn from this game to garner the full court. You will be playing on this sectioned off area."

"Excuse me?" Riko asked, clearly irritated at the cockyness this coach was displaying.

"Well, regardless you will be playing our regulars, so please try not to let us triple your score. Kise, show Seiren to the visitor locker room please." Kaijou's coach said walking back towards the bench. When he saw Ryona putting on her jersey he told her that it was not necessary, as they still wanted to make it a game.

The blonde jogged over to Seiren and flinched at the looks that they were shooting her and her team. Ryona made her way directly over to Kuroko and whispered to him, "They don't know about you. Please don't take this as an insult. I'm sure I will be put in right away when they experience your play. You're the last person that deserves to be looked down upon.". She addressed the rest of the group saying, "If you cannot even force me to play, you have no right to be saying things like 'I am going to defeat the generation of miracles'". She had looked directly at Taigari when she said this.

Seiren continued on towards their locker room, but Kuroko turned around at the last second. "Ryona-san. Please begin your warm ups. You will not be on the sidelines long.". With that, Kuroko turned and left the blonde who was smirking and likewise followed her team to their own sidelines and awaited the first duel between the Generation of Miracles.

The game was about to begin, and both teams lined up to receive the tip off. "Excuse me, Seiren would you please put your fifth player on the court so we may begin?" the referee said, who was a first string volunteer for that game.

"We have five players already sir." Kuroko said, standing right in front of the boy.

"WAH!" _'I didn't even notice him and he was right there!'_ The ref thought.

"No way, there was a kid right in front of me and I had no idea." commented one of the Kaijou players.

Takeuchi sat on the benches next to Kise, and began to complain once again about Seiren. "This is ridiculous. I thought that they would atleast have some decent players to content in real games with. Number 11 is just laughable with his weak and unpurposeful stature."

Ryona looked shocked at what the coach said. Nobody had ever picked on Kuroko during their run in Teiko because the Miracles took all the spotlight and attention. Many spectators actually thought it wa during the games Kuroko played. "You are right on one thing coach. That guy isn't decent. He's extraordinary."

The game started with a tip off in Seiren's favor. They tried to do a quick play on the basket but it resulted in a block by Kaijou. Kasamatsu received the ball and began giving court assignments mid play. Unfortunately for him, the phantom himself came out of his eye's blind spot the second he shifted his gaze up towards the basket, and stole the ball.

Kuroko dribbled the ball down the court, but realized that Kasamatsu was going to catch up to him. He ended up getting in front of Kuroko at the free throw line. Sensing Kuroko's need for help, Taigari had been sprinting down the court as well on his right side. Without thinking, she had her hands in the receiving position and before she knew it the basketball found its way in them. With nothing but open court ahead of her, she jumped up and dunked in the ball with as much force as she could muster.

"Hell Yea!" she yelled as she landed back on the ground.

"Kagami-san, how much do you think one of those is going to cost?" Kuroko asked, pointing to the rim that Taigari had severed from the backboard.

"Eh? EEH? How did this thing get here? Ooh, it's bigger than my head…" she trailed off.

Riko went over to Genta Takeuchi and apologized for the rusted rim's removal. "Perhaps now we can make use of the full court?" she asked.

Genta all but growled at the girl, and stalked off to activate the main hoops for the full gym court.

"Wow, I don't think I've ever seen him this mad…" Kise said as she walked alongside the shadow and light.

After a brief break, the game resumed. This time however, Ryona had walked onto the court. "Sorry to keep you waiting Seiren." she said with a wink.

"You're finally in." Taigari replied.

"Ryona-sama is in the game! Gaaaah!"

"Wow the idol that plays basketball is in her debut game at Kaijou! This is awesome!"

Students began to swarm the upper balcony of the gymnasium to give support unto a certain part time popstar.

"W-what is this…" Hyuuga asked under his breath.

"This happens every practice match between our players as well." Kasamatsu said. He went up to Kise and wrung his hand around her neck to give her a noogie. "Stop waving at your fans and start playing!"

"Mou, fine. It's not my fault they love to come see me play…" she retaliated.

"You understand what this means, don't you." Kasamatsu said in a serious tone. "It would be rude not to pay them back after that little display they just did." All traces of her joking personality went away as Ryona got serious for a moment.

"Of course senpai." She turned to look at Taigari. "I can't say the same about boys, but I have never failed to return a favor on the court.".

Taigari just grinned, knowing that the fight ahead of her was going to be the hardest she has ever faced.

As soon as the game started, Kasamatsu passed between Izuki's legs and into the hands of their female player. She ran up to the net and dunked it as hard as she could, harder than Taigari's but not enough to break a brand new rim. "I told you to break it!" Kasamatsu yelled as he went in to wring her neck again. Unfortunately, he seemingly tripped on air and fell to the ground before he made it to her.

The game continued on, each team playing quick offense with an increasing intensity every play. The score remained tied, with each team pulling ahead one point with each dunk or layup.

"T-this is so intense! The numbers on Kaijou's players are really good, not to mention that Kise's are insane! How can one girl have that much skill and develop the right muscles to copy anything the guys do? Speaking of development though… WHY DOES A FIRST YEAR HAVE A D CUP WHEN I JUST HAVE A B ONE!" Riko raged.

Unfortunately, said assets were not hard to miss as the beauty played. Some of the guys in the fans tried to take pictures of the game when Kise crossed over or jumped and her breasts bounced. Weirdly enough, each time they looked at the picture they took, there was a strange blue blur that got in the way of their shot. "Useless phone cameras" they muttered.

The game was 17-16 Kaijou, and Hyuuga had the ball. "Captain" Kuroko said from directly behind him scaring the crap out of the second year. "We should take a timeout. Kagami needs to cool down a bit." The shooting guard looked over and saw that Riko had the same idea.

"Timeout. Seiren!" the Referee called.

"Alright guys, you are doing well so far, Izuki I want you to play closer to Kasamatsu, prevent him from taking shots and passing to the outside. Kise is a problem, however. Kagami needs help in that area." Riko said.

"Excuse me coach. Let me take care of that prideful girl… please." Taigari added.

Riko was about to refute when...

"WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU GUYS DOING!?" Seiren heard Kaijou's coach yell from across the gym. "Is the defense asleep out there? How did Seiren score so many points against us!?"

"Sorry coach" Moriyama said.

"Man this is rough" Kasamatsu muttered under his breath. "You should be able to take care of Kagami Kise, but that invisible guy is really giving us trouble."

"Aah! Kasamatsu you finally realized! Kurokochii is actually my old teammate. He is so cool, is really kind and patient, and totally rocks on the court! I actually wanted t-"

"Shut up! Now isn't the time to praise the enemy!" Kasamatsu interrupted her rant.

"Don't worry senpai." both Ryona and Kuroko said to their own teams at once. "He/She has a weakness."

Kuroko continued, "Unfortunately I won't be able to help much in the near future. This high paced game has really done some work on my misdirection. I don't think that I can keep it up for much longer". This was a lie, as Kuroko was able to play full games with and against members of the Generation of Miracles back in middle school, and had been training on his stamina for a while after he realized his weakness. However, Kuroko needed his team to be less dependant on him if they were going to develop as a group. His misdirection was actually becoming less effective, but he wasn't willing to pull any other tricks out of the bag just yet to deal with the Miracles. _'The more surprises I can save for the game against Akashi, the better. No doubt she will learn of anything I do in this or any other game up until then.'_

To his horror, Kuroko had been put in a Boston crab hold for neglecting to share this information with his coach. Luckily though, the timeout ended soon after, so he was spared a bit of the pain.

"Aww, and I was just getting started on Kuroko" Riko pouted. She didn't see the glare Ryona was shooting her for trying to hurt Kuroko, especially because of the closeness the hold put the two individuals.

"I didn't know that in addition to your poor vertical, you also are slow at peddling Takao." a green haired girl with glasses commented from the back of a rickshaw.

"C'mon Shey, we said we would split the time that each of us pulled!" Takao complained back.

"I, don't seem to remember this conversation in fact." the girl replied. Midorima Sheyonta is a remarkable shooter, and does everything she can to be prepared for each game. The shooting guard for the Generation of Miracles held her lucky item of the day, a toy frog, trusting the oha asa that it would keep her away from harm.

"You must really be anxious to see your old teammates play huh Shey?" Takao asked from up front.

"Not in particular. Ryona is an ape with all her dunks. Also… when did we get this familiar that you can use a nickname for me in fact?" Midorima asked, glaring at the back of Takao's head.

Takao shivered, but remembered something about the teammates they were going to watch. "Why didn't you say anything bad against Kuroko? The only GUY on your old team?" he asked in a teasing tone.

"It's not like I care if he wins or not. I just want to make sure nobody can beat us, Shuutoku High." Midorima said, pushing up her glasses.

Takao wasn't done teasing her yet, "Oooh! What if Kuroko goes for a layup and Kise blocks it, but they end up holding hands on accident? Or, what if Kise accidently takes Kuroko's water bottle by mistake? Ooh Ohh! Or…"

"Takao." Midorima said in a dark tone. "Do you want to walk back to Shuutoku?".

"N-no ma'am." he replied quickly. _'She's totally a tsun.'_ he snickered.

Back at Kaijou, the game resumed following Seiren's timeout. Kuroko remained in the game until the halftime break, but allowed Kaijou to creep ahead almost 15 points due to the lack of misdirection used.

Kise had blocked a dunk of Taigari's right before the half ended, and they had words under the net. "You are many years too early to challenge the Generation of Miracles. Anything you do I can do twice as good." Ryona said. "This sport is unfair to those that simply cannot grow tall enough or lack the natural talent to score without fail. Comparing our two teams, the difference is huge. I don't think that the score gap will lessen at all, but it definitely will get larger as the game continues."

Kagami had started laughing at the end of Kise's speech. "Hahahahah! Very good! I haven't heard anything like that since I was in America!". At this Ryona had starry eyes as she thought about the place where basketball originated. "However, I will say this one thing. You have a deadly weakness that you cannot overcome. You said it yourself… anything you see you can replicate better. Well what if you can't see the threat? Your weakness is this guy right here!" Taigari threw her arm around Kuroko's shoulders as she said the last part, garnering a dangerous glare from the blonde.

"Please stop roughing me up Kagami-san." Kuroko asked. "I hate that once again there is a girl on my team that towers over me."

The referee called for the second half to begin, so each team went back to their benches to prepare for the half.

"It appears that Kagami-san has cooled down" Riko commented. "Do you two think you can do coordination play to amp up the pressure this half?"

Taigari looked unsure but Kuroko put a hand on her head and softly patted her with the tips of his fingers. "We can do this" he said with a small smile. Ryona was looking really desperate as she saw what just took place.

Throughout the second half, Kuroko and Kagami were able to close the gap using their partner plays. Kuroko would tip the ball, allowing Kagami to drive down the field and dunk. On defense, the two would cover high and low against Kise, effectively shutting her down.

Seiren had pulled ahead by 10 points when there were 6 minutes left in the third quarter. Ryona was getting frustrated that she and her team could not stop the light and shadow duo that ran all over them on the court. She grinded her teeth together and began to once again dribble the ball down the court. Unfortunately, that is when disaster struck. Ryona had the ball stolen once again by Kuroko, and it was immediately flicked over to Hyuuga, who yelled "Fast Break!". In an attempt to quickly turn around and follow the play, Ryona ended up tripping on Kuroko, who she forgot was there in her fear of getting beat. Her elbow made harsh contact with his forehead. The two fell down together, with Kuroko on the bottom cushioning her fall.

A grunt of pain was heard under Kise, as she realized what she had done. Kuroko was laying there with a bleeding forehead, covering his left eye. "Kuroko-nii! I didn't mean to… I would never on purpose! I just got caught up in the game… please talk to me!"

"Ryona-san, it's just a little bl-" Kuroko had lost consciousness mid sentence.

"Kuroko!" Seiren all yelled, seeing their player hit the ground hard. Right as they started thinking that they might win, something like this had to happen.

Taigari ran towards Kuroko, but Kise had already beat her there, laying the boy on her lap as she cried into his shirt. "No… Please wake up! I need you, I can't…" Ryona was babbling into Kuroko, unaware of everyone around her. She thought back to all of the times he was there for her. She thought of the indifference he showed her, despite her popularity. A scene from their third Winter Cup came into mind, when the words 'I'm done' were written on a note stuck to his locker, and the pain that came with realizing everything she had taken for granted. Ryona couldn't have him mad at her again, couldn't bear to hear the words from his mouth 'I just wanted to play basketball' or 'This is why I chose Kagami-san over you'.

"Kise! We need to take Kuroko to the bench to get first aid!" Taigari shouted, as she wrestled for the boy. "Do you want him to get injured even more!?"

Ryona looked lost as Kuroko was taken from her grasp and moved onto a bench behind Seiren. He was bandaged and allowed to rest for a while, as the injuries didn't look that bad.

"Kise. The game is continuing. Without that phantom player, I don't see Seiren winning. It is unfortunate that it had to happen like this, but we have a duty to finish the game. You know it's what your teammate would have wanted." Kasamatsu said, helping the blonde up off the floor.

As predicted, the game completely shifted into Kaijou's favor. Ryona played very little, unless it was against Kagami. By the middle of the fourth quarter, Kaijou was up 12 points on Seiren, who had only scored 4 since the incident.

"Time Out! Seiren!" the ref called once again.

"Alright, this doesn't look good. Focus on guarding your man, and Kagami-san… do you best against Kise." Riko said. The team drank up and stretched before preparing to walk back on the court. "If only Kuroko was playing…" Riko muttered, unaware that he had just regained consciousness and was listening.

"Understood." said the boy as he got off the bench and put on his wristbands.

"Ah! Kuroko! You don't have to go in. I was just thinking to myself." Riko stuttered, embarrassed that she had wanted an injured person to go in.

"Coach. We will lose if I don't play." Kuroko stated. He believed in his team, but it was too early for them to contend with a Generation of Miracles member without him. His light needed the assistance of its shadow.

"You're right but…" Riko trailed off.

"I'll be going then" Kuroko stated as he walked on the court. Riko bit her lip as she watched her injured player cross onto the play field. She went through with the substitution though, putting Kuroko back in the game.

Kise looked up as she heard that Seiren was substituting a player. _'It couldn't be…'_ she thought as she scanned over the court. "Kurokochii…"

Kuroko realized that he needed to console the blonde, but there was a game to play first. "Ryona-san. We will defeat you." he told her, as he made his way over to Taigari. Taigari slung her arm around the boy and grinned.

"My misdirection should be back to where it was before the game started. Just play your best and leave the details to me." Kuroko told his team, which he had said countlessly to the Generation of Miracles back in their first year during difficult games. "We will win this one for sure".

The game resumed, with both teams playing very offensively, and Seiren showing renewed spirit.

Takeuchi sat on the bench talking to his reserves, "That player is dangerous. True, he has an ability on the court that is unprecedented in the sport… but his true ability is getting his teammates to play their best and nothing but their best. He brought a team that was close to breaking back to 100% with a few words. Regardless, we will not let this win get out of our grasp.".

Despite the coach's words, Kaijou had let Seiren tie them with 30 seconds left in the game. Hayakawa yelled "Th(i)s (Re)bound is mi(ne)!" as he grabbed it and gave it to kasamatsu who scored 2 points. On a fast break, Izuki was able to fake out Kasamatsu and give the ball off to Hyuuga who scored a three right back.

52-51 was the score with 12 seconds left. Ryona had gotten over her depression of Kuroko's injury as the mantra of "Winning is Everything" repeated in her head. It was ingrained in her for three years, and she never considered losing before in her life.

Kise dribbled the ball downfield, breaking through the first year duo to dunk it incredibly hard against the rim. "You will not win this game." she said coldly to the two, all traces of mirth gone.

"There is still time, Ryona-san." Kuroko said as Koganei through the ball in to Izuki. The team ran down the field only for the ball to get stolen by Kasamatsu. With 6 seconds left, it seemed that the steal would be game, until out of the shadows Kuroko tipped the ball back towards Kaijou's goal. Hyuuga ran with it, only to pass the ball to Kuroko. Kise, thinking that the boy must pass it, ran to block Kagami from getting the ball. However, Kuroko shot it.

The ball sailed towards the rim to Kise's astonishment. Kuroko never shoots, his percentage from that far away is less than 5%. It was then that a shadow crept over her as Taigari launched into the air towards the ball. 'It's an Alley-oop!' she thought as she jumped to try and contest the shot.

"Here's something you can't pay us back with!" Taigari proclaimed as she slammed the ball down past Ryona's fingertips. "Because this one… is a buzzer beater!" she yelled, jamming the ball through the rim moments before the buzzer sounded, calling the game.

Seiren had beaten Kaijou, 54-53.

"We… WE WON!" Riko was celebrating with the first years on the bench, as the players on court were jumping up and down in delight. Kuroko and Kagami shared a hug as they overcame the first obstacle of their partnership. One Miracle down, four to go, and many more experiences to be had.

Kise just stood there with her face overshadowed from her bangs. _'I… lost? How could I have lost? You really are amazing Kuro-sama.'_ Several tears had fallen down her face before she realized she was crying.

"Wow, is she really going to cry over a practice game? So uncool" one of her fans said from the balcony. "That's pretty pathetic if you ask me". He was going to say more but he felt a piercing gaze from Seiren's side of the court, so he backed off and left the gym with his friends.

Kuroko was going to go and see how Ryona was doing, but could not find her anywhere. "Kasamatsu-kun. Where did Kise-san go?" he asked the other team's captain.

"She ran out towards the drinking fountains in the back of the gym I think… Man, can't she take a loss with the team? I'm going to get mad if she says she's never lost before today." he started to rant.

"Please go easy on her. I will go check and see what's wrong." Kuroko replied, already on his way out.

Outside, Kise was running her hair through the water spout, thinking about the game just now. _'Losing really isn't something I want to experience ever again… it hurts. I feel it in my chest, in my legs, in my arms, and even in my head. I feel a sense of disappointment in myself, like I let down the people that believed in me.'_

"Kise. It is a bad day for Gemini's, but I certainly didn't expect to see you lose in fact." a green haired girl said, pushing up her glasses.

"Oh, Sheyonta-san. It's nice to see you after three months. I see you're still taping your left hand.

"Of course. I do everything in my power, and leave the rest up to fate." she recited.

"Shouldn't you be talking with Kurokochii instead of me? He is the one who came out on top." Kise mumbled.

"You know that we do not see eye to eye on many things… our blood types don't match up right for that. Besides, there is nothing I have to say to him regarding this game. I expect he is looking forward to our match, so he can say what he likes at that time."

Shey shifted her lucky frog over to her right hand and walked towards Ryona. The blonde felt a stinging sensation on her cheek a moment later, and realized that the shooting guard had slapped her.

"Don't think I didn't see what you did to our protector. The guy that understands and watches over each of us deserves much better than the way you treated him on the court. He even broke your fall when you hurt him." she said with a cold glare.

"He wasn't hurt that bad, and the team was going to take him to get looked at. They think that he should be fine." Kise said.

"He better be, or you might be in for a huge punishment."

I know, I deserve any punishment you have to give." Ryona muttered, tears returning to her eyes. 'How could I have done that to him when he has given up everything for us?'

"It is not my place to decide punishment. But don't think that Akashi won't find out about this. I would apologize to her as well when you get the chance." Midorima said. With that, she turned and walked away, leaving the blonde sulking once again.

Seiren had indeed taken Kuroko to the hospital, where he was given the green light to return to practice, on the account that he took it easy over the weekend. The team finally celebrated, and decided to treat themselves to a nice dinner meal.

Unfortunately, they were all broke. It turns out that a nearby steak restaurant was having a challenge where each person got two and a half times the average portion of steak, and if they couldn't finish everything would have to pay for all the meat. However, if everything was eaten, the meal was free.

The team went in and ordered the food, but it turned out that their eyes were bigger than their stomachs. Only able to eat two thirds of each of their meals, things looked grim for the team. Kuroko barely ate a quarter of his, stating that he was "stuffed" and placed his silverware on the table in defeat.

Things were looking grim, until Taigari finished her portion and asked Hyuuga if she could have his leftovers. Eventually everyone on the team gave their remaining meat to the girl, and she devoured it like a black hole.

"You're going to get fat Kagami-san" Kuroko stated with a small smile on his face.

"Wah! Kuroko! Don't say something like that out loud!" Taigari yelled out in embarrassment.

She was able to finish everyone's portions and the group was effectively kicked out due to the fact that the restaurant lost all of its profits that day from the single group.

As the team was heading home, Kuroko noticed Ryona standing off to the side, watching with apprehensive eyes. "Excuse me, I will be right back" Kuroko said as he made his way over to the girl.

"Kise-san." he said in greeting.

"Oh Kurokochii! I'm so sorry for what I did! It seems like my whole world is falling apart. First I injure you, then my fans start to hate me, and even Shey-san came by to yell at me!"

 _'Midorima-san was here?'_ Kuroko thought.

The two walked towards the nearby park and sat on a bench, when Ryona burst into tears and fell against Kuroko's shoulder. "I'm such a failure Kurokochii!".

"Ryona-san" Kuroko began. "Come here". He held his arms out which the sulking blonde took immediately. "You really are amazing you know." She looked up at him in surprise. "You both play basketball and produce music for your fans. You deal with popularity and fame perfectly, giving fans just enough personal time to appear invested, but still keep time to yourself." He paused to rub her back a bit and thought back to the end of their game.

"Just because someone doesn't like or appreciate you, there is no reason to give up. Thousands of fans support you and are crazy about everything you do. Even if they weren't, and should everyone that adores you abandon you over anything, I will be there to encourage and help you a hundred times more than they would."

"B-but I hurt you Kuro-sam-...Kurokochii, and I'm mean before just today. How can you still be such a kind person to me even after everything I've done?"

"Seeing your true smile and happiness for the sport after so long is worth more than any grudge could ever be." he replied without missing a beat.

Ryona had a sad smile on her face, looking out behind Kuroko. Her cheeks were blushed as her heart pounded into her chest. _'C'mon Kurokochii, how can you tease me so much when I know I'd have to get in line to receive your affection. I would never be your first choice, but what you're saying makes me well wish I was. I guess I will have to prove to you my worth through the sport we love. I will start by trying to change back to when we were closest as a team. Kuro-sama will like that.'_

"So don't let someone who doesn't even know you change your attitude towards the things you love. I believe you're stronger than you give yourself credit for. Do your best, and don't worry about the consequences. That's my job Ryo-chan." Kuroko finished, unaware of the intimateness he used in her name.

Taigari watched from a distance away as the two seperated from their hug. She felt a funny feeling when Kuroko said what he did. She wanted someone to have her back the way he protected those from his old team, especially after the incident with her 'brother' back in America. Kagami had beaten Kise, but in that moment, Taigari felt that Ryona was the victor.

* * *

R&R

I hope everyone enjoyed the second chapter! It took roughly two weeks to write, and you can all expect a similar upload schedule in the future. If anything, it would be more like one and a half weeks between uploads.

One thing I would like you all to include in your reviews is how you want Haizaki portrayed. I know he/she is far away, but I have ideas regardless of what gener I make him. So please give me your input on that, as well as your thoughts on the recent chapter.

Thanks for reading! I will see you next time with the third chapter, where the inter high qualifiers really get going!

:)


	3. Chapter 3 Part 1

Here's what I have so far... its not much at all but it's something. Thank you all for reading.

Chapter 3: Food for Thought

Taigari slumped down against the tree, getting marks on her arms from the bark. She didn't particularly care though, because she had other things going through her head. She thought back to the remarks Kuroko had just made to the idol Kise Ryona.

" _Kise, I really believe in Taigari, she is the shining figure that our team needs to compete with the best. She is my new light, and as her shadow I will assist her best I can."_

 __" _Kurokochii… listen. Compared to the other four, I'm nothing. They each have a special ability that I cannot copy. They are geniuses in their own right at the sport of basketball. That Taigari girl… she is just like them. Not yet - but as I'm sure you've noticed.. She has the potential for a skill like theirs. Something unique, that sets her apart from every other player. Something… that will set her apart from her fellow teammates, both on the box score, and in her heart."_

" _Kise, you're not saying.."_

" _I'm not. All I can do is point out the similarities between us and her. Be careful Kuroko, I never want to see you hurt"._

" _Kise…"_

" _Bye Byeeee~!"_

Taigari could practically hear the wink from her hiding spot. She was deep in thought when a head of blonde hair passed her by.

"Oi Kise!"

"Oh! If it isn't the red haired spy." Ryona said, twirling around in a dead set stare at Kise.

"I heard what you told Kuroko, you little creep. Don't think you can put a rift between us that easily" Taigari said with a glare.

"Oh I think you misunderstood me, this isn't for my own benefit… but for Kuroko's." the blond said. "You're embarking on the same path as ours, one which lead to tragedy. As Kuroko's… friend, I don't want him to have another heartbreak. I don't want to see him quit for good." Kise walked away with those parting words ringing in Taigari's head.

' _What does that mean!?'_ Taigari thought to herself, staring at her legs. ' _The same path as them? She means greatness, right? Of Course I'm on that path… there's no need to tell Kuroko the obvious…'_

While Kagami was musing to herself at the foot of a tree, Kuroko had things on his own mind. ' _That's one down… four to go. I have a feeling who's going to be next'_.

In a nearby area of the park, there was a pickup game of basketball going on, involving a rag tag trio of high schoolers, against what appeared to be four seniors who were non stop mocking their opponents.

A trio member wearing a white Tee shirt slowly dribbled the ball forward. Seeing an opening to the left, he passed to his buddy wearing a headband, who drove down the lane. He was bodied out by a heavier senior wearing a green vest.

Turnover

The seniors ran down the court, a weasel looking boy taking point. "You guys can't even take it to the rim properly, I can't believe the time were wasting here. Just let us have the court and come back another day."

The freshman gritted their teeth. This was not good. What started as them putting their pride on the line in order to play more basketball before one of them had to move far away in the upcoming week, turned into a slaughterfest of bigger bodies and rough tactics.

The seniors posted up, with two of them playing the corner 3. They passed the ball back and forth over the heads of the freshman, mocking them the whole time.

"What are you going to do about it!?" one with a blue button-up sneered.

Eventually one of the freshman got lucky and knocked the ball down.

"BREAK!" he yelled, as he gunned it towards the opposing basket. All three of his opponents were behind him. This was his chance to make a statement dunk.

As he was going up to the basket a fourth senior who was previously watching came leaping at him and slapped the ball away, tongue out and shit eating grin plastered to his face.

"THAT'S NOT FAIR!" the freshman yelled, getting nothing but mocking laughter in return.

"We said we'd play basketball, we never agreed to a three on three" a senior replied.

The freshman were outraged. They were getting bullied off of their home court on the last day they can play as a group for quite some time. As they were getting ready to pack their bags and leave, the flop of a shirt and sneakers can be heard from the bench.

There was a teal haired boy who just stripped to his tee shirt and is putting on basketball shoes.

"Who's that guy?" one of the seniors asked, directed at the freshman. "One of yours?"

"W-we don't know him!" the freshman replied.

The boy got up off the bench and walked towards the group, staring down the rat faced senior. It was kind of unnerving for the older boy, although he wouldn't admit it.

"Hey kid, get off the court. We've got business to settle".

Kuroko fixed him a disappointed stare, "If that 'business' is bullying these three off of their court, then I am more than happy to intrude."

"WHY YOU!" the senior sputtered.

Kuroko extended his hand, pointing at the senior "One on One. If I can score against you, then you have to leave this court for good. If you manage to keep me from scoring in my first possession, then you win, and I along with these freshman will leave for good.

"Why would I agree to terms like that!?" the senior replied.

"If you don't, I'll put pictures of you all around the park with the caption 'Wimped out of a one on one with a boy two years younger than him". Kuroko stated.

'S-Seriously!' the senior yelled in his head. "Fine, i'll go a round with you. Hope you can keep up!"

 **DUEL**

 **One - On - One Kuroko vs Senior Bully**

 **If Kuroko scores, he wins. Streetball Rules.**

 **Loser Must leave court for good.  
-=START=-**

Kuroko started with the ball. He dribbled slowly, sizing up his opponent. He had the luxury of watching this guy play for a few minutes before introducing himself. The rat-faced senior was a fast player, with good ball handling skills, however he had a poor game-sense and appeared to be the most confident in his lay-ups as opposed to three point shots.

' _Good for me, since I am the only player on offense in this game, that he has good handles, but bad game sense. That is a direct advantage to me. Let's see how he reacts to something like this…'_

Kuroko began dribbling small, keeping the ball close to the ground. He shifted his feet quickly, not giving away his driving direction. The senior guarded him close, body slanted allowing a drive left, and sealing off a drive right, which appeared to be Kuroko's stronger side.

Kuroko faked a left drive, testing the senior. He bit. The senior, who almost fell down grit his teeth and hustled back to his position at guard. Kuroko smirked.

This was too easy.

Faking a few more drives left, Kuroko was confident that the senior was focused only on Kuroko's rotating body, and watching for any signs of a real drive. That was his mistake.

Kuroko noticed where the senior's attention was, picked up the ball in his left hand, and swung the ball behind his back, right through the senior's spread legs. The senior, who only had his focus on Kuroko's body, was unable to react in time to the ball coming at such an odd angle and direction.

The ball flew through the senior's legs, and took his attention long enough for Kuroko to slip past him, pick up the ball and get a clean layup to the basket.

 **Kuroko: 1 Senior: 0**

 **Kuroko Wins**

 **-=END=-**

Kuroko stood there, smile on his face. He was glad to have been able to pull off the teleport, as he coined the move, on a real person. He had wanted to show it off to Momoi, but hadn't had the chance recently. Distracting ones attention away from the ball was a great move to have once enemies caught on to his directing skills, and started only focusing on him when they felt his presence fading. This move was both flashy and effective at least once a game in a clutch time.

"I lost…" the senior mumbled. He had been utterly humiliated by this kid. His buddies were stunned on the sidelines, the freshman were cheering. ' _No way… I'm not letting this punk get away with making me look bad on MY COURT!'_

The senior marched over to Kuroko and grabbed him by the collar. "You might have a good basketball game, but your still a shrimp. Who says we have to settle differences with basketball play, why not have a good ol' fashioned beat down?" The senior said with venom in his voice.

As he raised his fist in the air, it was caught by a rather slender hand.

"Oi… what do you think your doing to my partner?" a female voice said from behind the senior.

He turned around with a glare, only to have it be replaced by awe at the beauty towering over him. There was a redhead at least five inches taller than him, hand gripping his wrist to a level that was starting to hurt.

"If you're looking for a beatdown, I think I can give you what you're looking for" the redhead growled.

The senior's screams were heard late into the evening as they ran away. In the coming weeks, the red devil would become a popular legend around the area.

The freshman thanked Kuroko many times for saving them before taking their leave. It was getting late and they had already used up all the free time they had for the day. This left just Kuroko and Taigari on the court.

"Taigari… what are you doing here?" Kuroko asked.

"U-uh…" Kagami stuttered. ' _Crap! I can't tell him I came to eavesdrop on his conversation with the blonde, but there's no way I would be here by chance when the rest of the team is away...'_

Chapter 3 is not finished yet, but this is what I have written so far, hopefully see you all soon!


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